Local talent shines at the GOMACC grand finale

Over the weekend, the Department of Arts and Culture hosted the grand finale of the DAC/GOMACC Arts and Culture Development Programme at the Soweto Theatre.

The winning groups from the five regions in Gauteng participated in a performance showcase featuring theatre, poetry, dance and music. Some winners in the central region were the Alexandra Youth In Action Ensemble, Alex Rock Stars, Arts 24 Academy and more.

While giving a much-needed platform to young developing artists in the four disciplines, the event also highlighted the importance of the White Paper recently initiated by the DAC. With the intention of achieving greater participation by local and provincial government in the arts at a grass roots level, the White Paper aims to promote and support developing artists in all disciplines.

“We have seen that there has often been a much stronger focus on sport and the arts are overlooked, even though the arts are an important creative and developmental discipline. It has been said that there are more potential jobs available today involving an arts discipline,” said Jerry Mabuza, chairperson of GOMACC.

Auditions took place in the five regions of Gauteng, being Central, Tshwane, Sedibeng (the South), East and West Rand. There was a great show of talent in all regions with artists bringing their lived experiences to the stage in creative and exciting ways. During the regional competitions winners took home cash prizes and the opportunity to perform at the Soweto Theatre in the finale.

“The regionals were well attended and created a start to more local government participation in community arts,” Mabuza said